Many common kitchen fixtures and other similar items are located integrally within countertop surfaces. Such fixtures often include sinks, stoves, and the like. Due to the wide variety of such fixtures available, countertop surfaces are generally manufactured as bulk units which are then custom cut at the point of installation to allow for the specific fixtures which are to be placed within the surface.
Due to the unwieldy shape of many of these countertops, cut-out operations are often difficult to perform. It is generally necessary to support a cutout portion of the countertop during installation otherwise damage to the remaining countertop surface, the underlying cabinet, or flooring surface may result. Injuries to the workers can occur as well. This operation is difficult for a single user to manage. Either a second person is necessary to hold the cut-out from the bottom, or a large brace is built. Both processes generally result in increased cost, time, and labor necessary to perform these operations. Furthermore, recent additions to countertop building materials such as heavy stone, engineered stone and the like have only added to the problem.
Various attempts have been made to provide a retaining means for countertop fixtures. Examples of these attempts can be seen by reference to several U.S. patents. U.S. Pat. No. 2,885,691, issued in the name of Juergens, describes a sink retainer assembly which provides a means for securely retaining a sink in position during an installation operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,102,374, issued in the name of Klein, describes a jig and template apparatus for corner inserts which provides cutting guides and a pneumatic piston assembly for securing the workpiece and corresponding templates.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,793,190, issued in the name of White et al., describes a retainer clip designed for mounting sinks to countertops which includes a ratchet plate and a pawl allowing for press-in above-counter installation of the fixture.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives, each of these references suffer from one (1) or more of the aforementioned disadvantages. Many such devices are not adaptable to a wide variety of fixture installations. Also, many such devices are not suitable for retaining a cut-out portion of a countertop surface during a cutting operation. Furthermore, many such devices do not allow a user to make cuts to the surface while the device is in place. Accordingly, there exists a need for a countertop cut-out retainer without the disadvantages as described above. The development of the present invention substantially departs from the conventional solutions and in doing so fulfills this need.